Week 5
READ Hebrews 11:4-6 “Heroes of the Faith”
QUESTIONS:
In light of yesterday’s passage, we see that faith is not something you get then forget. You don’t get faith, get saved, and then live, however. That is not faith and that is not salvation. Faith has at its essence long-suffering perseverance that will not give up until it receives its prize…Christ. If we truly have faith that we have a better possession in Christ and an abiding one, we will not give up on the joy of our soul. We are urged and passionate to pursue the object our faith has found great delight in.
But, you know as I do, there are days that are more difficult than others. What do we do then? How do we fight the fight of faith when our zeal and passion have escaped us?
One way may surprise you. And the answer comes directly from our passage today. You remember yesterday in v. 2, the author of Hebrews mentions the model faith of Old Testament saints as an example of how we can press on in our faith. Our Old Testament brothers didn’t lose heart as they pursued a better possession and we shouldn’t either. A great way to fan the flames of your faith is to study the faith of other Christians. I love Dietrich Bonheoffer, C.S. Lewis, Martin Luther, William Carey, John Calvin, George Whitefield, and many more. These guys encourage me to stay the course in my faith. The author of Hebrews does the same thing here in chapter 11. He calls to mind great heroes of the faith. The remainder of the chapter isn’t really a definition of faith as much as an illustration of it. These men and women lived a life of true faith and we would do well to imitate it.
So when v. 2 talks about men of old, who is he talking about? Good question…let’s see.
Read Hebrews 11:4. What do you know about Cain and Abel? Explain the offerings they gave and what God thought of them. (Read Genesis 4:1-7)
Yesterday we talked about how an unseen faith will make itself known through our seen lifestyles. How is that true in the case of Abel?
Did God commend Abel because of his faith, his works, or both?
How is Abel still speaking to us today?
What do you know about Enoch? (Read Genesis 5:21-24)
Read v. 5. Why did God take up Enoch? Why did God commend him?
Verse 5 ends with the phrase that Enoch “pleased God”. But notice that neither story from Genesis ever mentions faith. It only mentions that Abel was accepted and Enoch pleased God. But notice that verse 6 starts out saying it is impossible to please God apart from faith. How do we know Abel and Enoch had a true authentic faith in God?
As you remember Abel and Enoch, what is the only way to please God?
Why do you think faith is more pleasing to God than doing things for him?
Read v. 6. Why is it impossible to please God without faith? Or to say it the other way, why is it only possible to please God by faith?
Last big learning point. We said that faith is the assurance that God is a better possession and an abiding one. Better means reward and abiding means real. If something is a better possession than what you have that means it is a reward. If something abides with you it’s tangible and real. Hebrews 11:6 further describes the concept of faith by saying faith at its essence is pleasing to God because we come to him believing he is real and a greater reward than everything else. This is pleasing to God. Is it wrong to seek God for a reward? Why or why not?
How should you seek God if you believe he truly is real? What does that look like?